Business Protection Insurance to keep the business trading
The covers that keep income, cash flow and operations going when something goes wrong: a fire, a machine failure, a customer who cannot pay or a director who can no longer work. See how they differ and which ones your business needs.
- Income, assets, people and debtors in one view
- Plain guidance on what each policy pays for
- Specialist brokers for established firms
Reviewed October 2026 by the MyBusinessComparison.com editorial team
What is business protection insurance?
Business protection insurance is the group of policies that protect a firm's ability to keep trading after a serious setback. It covers lost profit after damage, breakdown of plant, unpaid invoices, the death or illness of key people, injury to staff and the assets the business relies on every day.
Liability insurance deals with claims made against you. Business protection deals with losses the business suffers itself, so it is judged on how quickly it puts money back into the company and how closely the cover matches the way you earn.
Business protection cover at a glance
- Protects
- Profit, cash flow, key people, staff, plant and equipment
- Usual foundation
- A commercial combined policy with business interruption
- Pays to
- The business, except personal accident benefits paid for staff
- Key figures
- Gross profit, indemnity period, debtor book and asset values
- Often required by
- Lenders, investors, landlords and customers' contracts
- Arranged by
- A specialist commercial broker, often alongside the main renewal
Which business protection covers are there?
Each policy protects a different source of income or value. Most firms combine several, built around their biggest single point of failure.
Commercial combined
Property, business interruption and liability sections on a single schedule, which is where most established firms start.
Read more about commercial combined insurance
Business interruption
Lost gross profit and extra costs of working after insured damage, for an indemnity period long enough to rebuild and win customers back.
Read more about business interruption insurance
Key person and business protection
Life and critical illness cover on directors and key staff, paid to the business, plus shareholder and loan protection.
Read more about key person insurance
Business equipment and machinery
Accidental damage, theft and breakdown of the machinery, IT and portable equipment the business runs on, on site and away.
Read more about business equipment insurance
Engineering inspection and breakdown
The periodic inspections of lifts, boilers, pressure systems and lifting gear, with cover for sudden breakdown and the resulting downtime.
Read more about engineering inspection and breakdown insurance
Trade credit
Unpaid invoices when a customer becomes insolvent or simply fails to pay, protecting cash flow and often supporting invoice finance.
Read more about trade credit insurance
Group personal accident and travel
Fixed benefits for staff injured in an accident, and medical, cancellation and baggage cover for people travelling on business.
Read more about group personal accident and business travel insurance
Terrorism
Damage and interruption caused by terrorism, which most property policies exclude unless the section is added.
Read more about terrorism insurance
Covers often bought with business protection
- Cyber insurance: downtime and lost income after a cyber attack, which a property based interruption section rarely covers
- Crime and fidelity: theft by staff and payment fraud, a common cause of sudden cash loss
- Commercial legal expenses: costs of pursuing or defending disputes that would otherwise drain cash
- Commercial property: buildings cover for owners, where interruption cover depends on the property claim
Which businesses need business protection?
Any firm whose income depends on one site, one machine, a few customers or a few people. These are the businesses where each cover tends to make the biggest difference.
Looking for a sector package? Business protection is often built into sector policies. See industry insurance or cover for trade firms.
- Manufacturers: production lines where one breakdown or fire can stop output for months, so interruption and engineering cover matter most
- Wholesalers and distributors: large debtor books on credit terms, where trade credit protects cash flow
- Engineering firms: specialist machinery with long replacement lead times, often under inspection and breakdown cover
- Construction companies: reliance on a few directors and main contractors who may fail, so key person and trade credit cover
- Technology companies: value concentrated in founders and developers, and income at risk from systems failure
- Professional firms and partnerships: partner or shareholder protection so remaining owners can buy out a share
- Hospitality groups: income lost while a kitchen, bar or hotel is closed after a fire or flood
- Multi-site retailers: interruption cover across several shops and terrorism cover for city centre sites
- Clinics and care providers: expensive medical equipment and income tied to particular clinicians
- Leisure venues: lifts, plant and pool equipment needing regular inspection, and income dependent on opening
- Warehouse operators: racking, forklifts and lifting gear under inspection, and terrorism cover for large sites
- Recruitment agencies: high payroll owed to temporary workers before clients pay, so credit cover protects working capital
- Farms and estates: machinery breakdown at harvest and interruption after damage to grain stores or livestock buildings
How much does business protection insurance cost?
Each policy is priced on what it protects, so the total depends on which covers you choose. These are the factors that matter most across the range.
Gross profit and indemnity period
Interruption cover is rated on the profit insured and how long it would take to recover. A longer indemnity period costs more but is often the sounder choice.
Age and health of key people
Key person and shareholder cover is priced like life insurance, on the age, health and lifestyle of each person and the sum insured.
Debtor book and customers
Trade credit is rated on insured turnover, the credit limits needed, the spread of customers and the sectors they trade in.
Plant and equipment
Age, type, maintenance records and replacement times for machinery drive equipment, breakdown and inspection costs.
Staff and travel
Personal accident and travel cover follow the number of people, the benefits chosen, the work they do and where they travel.
Location and protection
Sprinklers, alarms, business continuity plans and site location all affect interruption and terrorism premiums.
Where business protection leaves gaps
These are the shortfalls that come up most often when a business makes a claim on income or asset cover.
- Interruption with no insured damage behind it, as most policies need a valid property claim first, unless extensions such as utilities or denial of access apply
- An indemnity period too short for rebuilding, re-equipping and winning back customers
- Gross profit calculated on the wrong basis, so the claim is cut back for underinsurance
- Losses from cyber attacks, which usually need a separate cyber policy
- Debts owed by customers outside agreed credit limits or already overdue when cover started
- Wear and tear and gradual deterioration of machinery, as opposed to sudden breakdown
- Pre-existing medical conditions, depending on how key person cover was underwritten
- Terrorism damage, unless terrorism cover has been added to the property and interruption sections
Business interruption or key person insurance?
Both protect income, so they are often confused. They respond to completely different events.
| Feature | Business interruption | Key person |
|---|---|---|
| What triggers a claim | Insured damage to property, such as fire or flood | Death or diagnosis of a critical illness of a named person |
| What it pays | Lost gross profit and extra costs over the indemnity period | A lump sum, or sometimes regular payments, to the business |
| How it is priced | On profit, indemnity period and the property risk | On the person's age, health and the sum insured |
| Where it sits | A section of a property or combined policy | A life policy owned by the business |
| Usually suits | Firms that depend on premises, stock or plant | Firms that depend on a few directors or specialists |
How to choose business protection cover
Start with the event that would hurt the business most, then work outwards.
Find your single points of failure
A key site, a critical machine, a major customer, a supplier or a director the business relies on.
Work out the money at stake
Gross profit, the debtor book, replacement values for plant and what losing a key person would cost.
Estimate recovery time
How long rebuilding, replacing machinery or recruiting would really take, including lead times.
Review existing policies
Check the interruption section of your combined policy and any cover already held by lenders or shareholders.
Compare policy terms
Look at indemnity periods, waiting periods, credit limits, inspection schedules and exclusions as well as price.
Want help finding the weak points?
Tell us how your business runs and a specialist broker will compare the protection that fits.
Compare quotesChoosing business protection insurance: FAQs
Which business protection cover should a firm buy first?
Most established firms start with a commercial combined policy that includes business interruption, because damage to premises or stock is the most common cause of lost income. Key person, trade credit and breakdown cover usually follow once the firm's main dependencies are clear.
Is business interruption included in a commercial combined policy?
Usually it is offered as a section, but it is not always taken. Check that the schedule shows a gross profit or revenue figure and an indemnity period, and that both reflect how long recovery would genuinely take.
What is the difference between key person and shareholder protection?
Key person cover pays the business to cope with losing someone vital to profits. Shareholder protection provides money for the remaining owners to buy the shares of a shareholder who dies or becomes seriously ill. Many firms need both, written as separate arrangements.
Do I need engineering inspection if my machinery is already insured?
Usually, if the business runs lifts, pressure systems or lifting equipment. Property and equipment cover pays for damage but does not provide the periodic examinations that this plant needs. Engineering inspection policies provide those examinations and usually add breakdown cover.
Is trade credit insurance worth it for a business with good customers?
Often, yes, because good customers can still fail suddenly, sometimes through problems further up their own supply chain. Credit insurers also monitor buyers and set limits, which helps decide how much credit to give, and lenders may advance more against an insured debtor book.
Is terrorism cover needed outside major cities?
Sometimes. Risk is higher in city centres and near prominent sites, but attacks and their knock on effects are not confined to them. Lenders and landlords often require the cover. A broker can show how the premium varies with location.
How much does business protection insurance cost?
It depends which covers you choose and the values behind them: gross profit and indemnity period, debtor turnover, plant values, the age and health of key people and the number of staff covered. Each is priced separately, so building the package in stages is common.
How do I get a business protection quote?
Tell us about the business using the form on this page and a specialist broker will contact you. Recent accounts, gross profit figures, plant and equipment values, details of key people and your debtor book help the broker approach suitable insurers.
Ready to protect what keeps you trading?
Talk to a specialist broker about income, key people, plant and debtors, and build cover around the risks that would hurt most.